A rendering of the revitalized Battersea Power Station in London. Battersea Power Station

Apple is moving its UK headquarters to the Battersea Power Station — London's iconic brick building that Pink Floyd portrayed on the cover of its 1977 album "Animals." The station's redevelopment is part of an estimated $16.5 billion megadevelopment of the Nine Elms neighborhood, one of the most expensive developments in the city's history.

The tech giant will relocate its 1,400 UK employees to the building after its $1.26 billion restoration is completed in 2021.

Located in southwest Nine Elms, the former power station will serve as the center of the larger redevelopment project (dubbed the Battersea Power Station development), which features apartments, hotels, roof gardens, parks, and other offices and will happen in nine phases. Costing an estimated $9.9 billion, the Battersea Power Station Development project is just one component of Nine Elms' ongoing transformation.

A Malaysian consortium and architecture firm WilkinsonEyre will lead the power station's development, which includes converting the building into offices, shops, event space, theater, and condos.

The 500,000 square-foot space, spread over six floors, will have exposed brick and an industrial aesthetic."It follows the trend toward making authentic-looking workspaces rather than sterilized, 1980s-style spaces," Ricard says.

It will also feature 197 apartments, 34 two-story villas, and two penthouses. The apartments will range from about $372,000 to $30 million. Ricard says the station's redesign process "was a lot like designing a mini city."

Some Londoners have criticized the Nine Elms project as being aimed more toward wealthy foreign buyers than locals. Much of the Nine Elms' $16.5 billion investment has poured in from foreign developers, according to The Guardian.

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